What i was trying to say with this one is that it's not strictly correct in many ways.
The tank decal for example should really belong on a much older motor, although i like these flying seagull ones myself.
The drive tube.....hmm paint is one thing (you can spot that from 50 paces), but chrome is better.
Then there's the gearbox, which going by the serial number alone will tell you this is not entirely right for the motor.I know i know, we've seen this sort of thing many times before but you cannot say that this seagull is in original condition any more. What you have to ask yourself is would this gull have left the factory looking like this, and the answer is probably no it wouldn't. Do you see where i'm coming from?

Yes, the guy has obviously spent a lot of time and money on this old gull there's no disputing that, but i see it as more of his interpretation of a restoration. As everyone keeps saying each to their own, and this is quite clearly his own take on things. I'd give it 7 out of 10, it's good but is it good enough in someone else's eyes?

Just like Jacob, i have a bit of a fondness for the "barn found" condition, missing chrome and paint, dings and dents everywhere, but above everything else it must be complete with all the right bits on it, and an added bonus if it still runs that's better still.
On the flip side there's absolutely nothing wrong with doing a proper restoration as long as the motor presents itself as though it had just left the factory from where it was made, and this is perhaps what sorts out the chaff from the wheat when it comes to a restoration.

I hope he/she got a point for not taking the easy eBay breakers option selling as parts they would make more money ,I like the ads on there selling parts from good running engines !!! If this is 75% restoration job I wonder what reason for missing part was lack of information.effort ,parts etc or was it too expensive to complete as original I am sure if there was profit to be made in restoring engines for sale there would be web sites full of them ,even at 75% he is (saving old seagulls) doing his/her part .

What I seem to see more of, is a restoration that is of a good standard, but, on the cheap, non original decals and chrome work, I.E. painted drive tubes.
Later motors are much easier to do, as most parts are painted anyway and usually plentiful, so painting what should be chrome is just a cheap option and something the next owner will have to fix, but it not being sold as such, the price is trying to say its a fully restored motor when its not.
If you bought parts to make the motor, it would be cheaper than the asking price and remember a parted out motor will get more the one motor running again, so it's not always a bad thing, as most of us wouldn't have early running motor in our collection, if it wasn't for parts, most of the parts are not available from Seagull any more.

Without sending out the wrong vibes about this,what we see more and more of these days are certainly what could be called acceptable, but not necessarily historically or aesthetically correct. Like i was trying to say from the start,and like Keith has just mentioned there's some "cheaper" ways to achieve the same results.
In some people's eyes these things are dead easy to spot, and to a prospective and serious collector of older seagulls (not me by the way) these "cheap fixes" often take longer to un-do and put right. This so called "standard" of restoration varies between one person and the next, and as a result some engines will present themselves better than others. Beauty is in the eye of the beholder, or put another way each to their own.

Rene's pics are just the sort of thing i like to see in "barn found" condition. Clearly most, if not all of it is there, just untouched for many years.Warts and all...and nothing hidden. It doesn't get any more honest than that.

The real skills come down to the individual doing the restoration and to what lengths they're willing to go to in order to achieve the right level or "standard" in their workmanship. (remember the 6 p's)
Doing the job right the first time goes a long way in my book. Paint where paint was before, chrome where chrome was before. Don't cut corners for the sake of cheapness or quickness.

Maybe i'm just old fashioned, but having a critical eye over something like this will get noticed sooner or later.

Fully restored should mean exactly that, nothing out of place anywhere,nothing that would give reason to doubt anything,head and shoulders above all the rest,and when such a restored engine shows itself in the future i'm sure the price will be reflected accordingly.

Why then do the likes of ebay allow things like this to be advertised (sometimes wrongly) as refurbished or restored?

When all's said and done, i still kind of like this 102 in a strange way even if it's not quite right but as you know by now i'm just fussy.